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“I can see why; the view is beautiful.”
A loud yawn sounded behind us and I spun around to find Luci curled up by the fireplace. My mouth fell open.
“Well, I couldn’t have this fine beast sleeping in the mud room.” He chuckled and returned to his chair beside Luci and the roaring fire.
“Thank you,” I gushed, settling into the lounge opposite. “He’s not going to want to go home.”
“Fine with me.” Grandpa chortled, pouring a creamy liquid into two mugs.
Eyeing him curiously as he passed one over, I brought it to my nose and raised my eyebrows. “It’s a little early for eggnog, isn’t it? Shouldn’t we at least have breakfast first?”
“Well, it has eggs in it. Seems like a good breakfast to me.”
I smirked and shrugged. “You have me there.”
“But if you prefer to eat with that lot, you’re most welcome.”
My eyes widened. “No, no, this is fine.”
Grandpa leant further back into his chair. “So, how long have you lived in New York?”
“Almost six years now,” I replied, blowing on the hot liquid.
He tilted his head. “And Australia before that?”
“Yeah, most of my life.” A twinge of homesickness crept up on me.
“Wow, must be quite the change. Are you thinking of returning some day?”
I fleetingly wondered if he was trying to pry information out of me for Grayson’s parents, but he appeared genuinely interested in my life.
“For a holiday perhaps. I loved it there, but all my memories are laced with sadness now.”
Grandpa nodded slowly. “Grayson mentioned you lost your parents in an accident. I lost mine early in life also.”
My heart ached for him. “It’s still hard to talk about,” I said, swallowing the familiar lump in my throat.
“The pain never really goes away, but you’ll find a way to move forward. It’s hard to let people in after something like that, knowing what real loss feels like. But don’t be afraid to. I’m lucky Betty was so persistent with me. If it wasn’t for her, well, I never would have opened myself up to real love.” He smiled sadly at the memory of his late wife.
I discreetly wiped away a lone tear as it rolled down my cheek, and drank another mouthful.
Tucking my feet under my body, I melted into the lounge while Grayson’s grandfather spoke about his parents, his childhood, and told hilarious stories of sibling rivalry between Grayson and Adam as kids.
He didn’t have much to say about his own son except, “I didn’t tell him ‘no’ enough as a child.” He blamed himself for not teaching his son to value people over money. “At some point, he lost sight of happiness and pursued what he thought I wanted from him; wealth and status.”
The parlour doors flung open and Grayson barged into the room, exhaling when he saw me. “There you are. I couldn’t find you or Luci, and thought you’d left.” He spied Luci curled up in front of the fire and his shoulders relaxed.
“You’re not leaving yet, are you?” Grandpa asked, with a frown. “Don’t you worry about those bullies. You will not be insulted under my roof ever again.”
“Thank you, Grandpa,” Grayson said, before turning to me.
I met Grayson’s pleading gaze. “I guess I could stay a little longer.”
Grandpa clapped his hands. “Wonderful! Well, let’s go open some presents then.”
Even though the only gift to me under the tree was an exquisite silk scarf from Grayson’s grandfather, my fingers played with the opal pendant hidden under my top. Grayson eyed me and smiled as he knelt down to pick up the remaining gifts under the tree.
“Last ones,” he announced, handing one of the gifts to his parents. “To Mr. & Mrs. Harlow, love, Josie.”
